Febraury 24, 2022 - The Niagara Knights mens basketball team's two game winning streak came to an end on Tuesday night with a 84-79 loss to the Redeemer Royals.
The Royals were fresh off two wins earlier in the week and looking to extend their unbeaten streak against the 3-1 Knights.
The opening minutes of the game proved to set the high tempo tone for the game with both teams hungry for an important win in a shortened season.
The Knights took control of the opening frame outscoring the Royals 24-20 before the Royals stormed back in the second quarter to take the lead and end the first half with a narrow 44-41 lead.
The Royals second quarter effort seemed to be the turning point of the game, as Redeemer never relinquished the lead again despite the Knights being right on their heels.
With just under two minutes remaining in the fourth, Niagara's Delroy Grandison hit a jumper to pull the Knights within one point of the Royals lead. The Royals however, buckled down and went on to secure the 84-79 win.
Kennan Larmand led the Knights in scoring with 19 points, followed by Rahim Bardi with 16. Grandison, who was named the OCAA Men's basketball Athlete of the Week, pulled down 13 rebounds for the blue and white.
The Knights will look to bounce back in the win column with a double header weekend at home against St Clair (4-1) at 3:00 pm Saturday and Lambton College (3-2) Sunday at 3:00 pm.